A whistle is typically used by referees, umpires and other officials in various sports, events, and games to signal the start and stop of action and announce penalties or goals. Traditional sports whistles range in style and type. Some have a metal body or case with a ball inside and are called a pea whistle. Others have a plastic body with sound chambers and are called “pea-less” whistles. Many whistles can be held in the hand or have an attached ring that can be clipped to a lanyard or tied to a string. Lanyards are typically worn around the neck but some are knotted and held in the hand or worn on the wrist. Other whistles, referred to as “finger whistles” are permanently attached to a ridged, but bendable metal bracelet type sleeve that is typically contoured to be worn around or clamped to the index and middle fingers.
To use a whistle attached to a lanyard worn around the neck, an umpire or official must first locate it with a free hand, grasp it in the free hand, position it in the free hand, and insert it into the mouth.
An advantage of a lanyard mounted whistle is that after inserting the whistle in the mouth, both hands are free to signal a foul or goal or to direct play while the whistle is being blown.
An advantage of a finger whistle or sleeve mounted whistle is that because of its fixed position on the fingers, it is quickly accessible and the free hand is simply moved to the mouth and the whistle inserted the mouth.
A disadvantage of using a finger whistle is that it requires that the umpire leave the hand close to the mouth while blowing the whistle which prevents the use of the hand and arm for the purpose of signaling a foul or announcing a goal while the whistle is being blown.
It is possible to remove the sleeve and whistle from the bare fingers with the mouth, however when a finger whistle is worn on a gloved hand, the process of removing it with the mouth is sometimes difficult or impossible and requires the hand to remain near the mouth or the use of the other hand to remove the whistle and sleeve from the gloved finger. This process delays the use of the hand or hands for signaling or directing play.
Another advantage of a whistle attached to a lanyard and worn around the neck is that after blowing the whistle, it permits the user to simply release the whistle from the mouth and let it drop, knowing that it is retained by the lanyard.
Another disadvantage of the sleeve mounted finger whistle that has been removed from the fingers and held in the mouth, is that after blowing, it is sometimes difficult or impossible to place the sleeve back on the fingers or gloved fingers using just the mouth and sometimes requires the use both hands to reinstall it back on the fingers. When this occurs it must be held in the mouth until both the hands are free. If the whistle is held in the mouth, the large sleeve and whistle makes it difficult to talk and verbally direct play or announce the foul especially if the hands are in use catching a ball or replacing a flag or restraining a player.
While the lanyard mounted whistle is convenient to use and does not encumber the hands once located and inserted in the mouth, it is sometimes difficult to locate and grasp in the hand while running since it is free to swing around the neck and occasionally flips over the shoulder or becomes tangled on clothing, a pen in the front pocket of a shirt or jacket, or an ear.
A sleeve mounted finger whistle is quickly accessible however it encumbers one hand during use and is difficult to remove from the fingers with the mouth should the hand and fingers be needed.
A whistle simply held in the hand, or a whistle attached to a lanyard and held in the hand, or a whistle attached to a lanyard designed to be worn around the wrist all share similar advantages or disadvantages of the lanyard mounted whistle worn around the neck or the finger sleeve mounted whistle.